Opposition mounts to plan to give Science Center parking to USC

California Science Center

Al Seib / Los Angeles Times

Richard Hercules and his fifth-grade classmates from Century Park Elementary School look at photographs in the latest exhibition related to the space shuttle Endeavour at the California Science Center Samuel Oschin Pavilion. As of March, 1 million people have visited the museum since the shuttle exhibit was opened, a big jump from the 1.6 million visitors it usually sees annually.

Richard Hercules and his fifth-grade classmates from Century Park Elementary School look at photographs in the latest exhibition related to the space shuttle Endeavour at the California Science Center Samuel Oschin Pavilion. As of March, 1 million people have visited the museum since the shuttle exhibit was opened, a big jump from the 1.6 million visitors it usually sees annually. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Opposition is mounting to a plan to take money-making parking spaces away from the California Science Center and give them to USC as part of a deal to have the private school operate the taxpayer-owned Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

The Science Center's fundraising foundation and Sen. Curren D. Price (D-South Los Angeles) have joined the ranks of critics who say the parking plan would damage attendance and programs at the center and its Exposition Park neighbor, the California African American Museum.

"The bottom line is that USC is a private institution and will literally take public resources as a gift, depriving the state of critical funds," Tom Soto, chair of the Science Center Foundation board, wrote in a letter to the chairwoman of the center's governing panel, Fabian Wesson.

Public hearings on the parking provision and the larger deal to grant USC control of the Coliseum complex are set for 6 p.m. Thursday at the African American Museum and 10 a.m. Saturday at the Science Center.

The Science Center, which offers free admission, has seen record attendance since the arrival of the space shuttle Endeavour. Museum backers like Steve Soboroff, the prominent civic leader, have said the loss of parking spaces to USC could cut into that growth.

Soto said the Science Center could be forced to give up most of the parking spaces on about half the weekends a year.

"That's a considerable bite," he said, adding the plan does not guarantee parking for school buses and tour operators shuttling visitors from as far away as China.

He also objected to the Science Center board's decision to give the public less than two weeks to review the proposal before a vote, which could come Wednesday. In his letter, he called the timetable "a clear indication of USC's intent to 'rush' the action through."

Price, the state lawmaker, was elected this month to the City Council seat that represents the Science Center. He said the loss of parking revenue under the plan could trigger "significant layoffs" at the museum.

A part of the plan that gives USC a discount on parking spaces it could resell at a profit would be "a gift of almost $500,000 annually" to the school, Price said.

He said the plan violated a state law that requires the parking garage to be operated in a way that benefits the Science Center and African American Museum.

Councilman Bernard C. Parks, whose district borders the Science Center, also called the parking plan "a gift of public funds."

In the wake of a corruption scandal and funding shortfalls, the Coliseum Commission already has decided to hand USC the keys to the stadium under a lease that runs to 2054. The Science Center vote could extend that agreement to 2111 and throw in the extra parking for USC.

A proposal to guarantee USC most of the parking spaces in a state-owned garage during Trojan football games and other events could hurt the neighboring California Science Center by driving down attendance, some supporters of the Exposition Park museum say.

The Times has been reporting on financial irregularities at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, stories that have triggered several criminal and civil inquiries. Three former Coliseum managers, two nationally prominent rave promoters and a stadium contractor have been indicted in the scandal. Commission...